


Lady's Bane

by benofie



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Declarations Of Love, Epic Love, F/M, My First Smut, Smut, Storm's End (ASoIaF), True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-01
Updated: 2019-06-01
Packaged: 2020-04-06 01:50:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19052818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/benofie/pseuds/benofie
Summary: Gendry tries to move on as Lord of Storm's End but he is haunted day and night by thoughts of Arya.





	1. Courting Attempt

**Author's Note:**

> I know I already wrote a ficlet putting Gendry on the boat. But I started to wonder what would happen if he hadn't gone with her. I still think all paths eventually lead them back to each other. Be patient with this one, it will pay off, I promise.
> 
> They are so epic.   
> "Spanning years and continents. Lives ruined, bloodshed. EPIC." (quote from another favorite ship of mine)  
> Gendrya had been separated once before and they found each other again. Their re-discovery of each other had a deep impact on both of them and they are forever changed now. They will always find their way back to each other. It's what they do.
> 
> Huge thanks to Dystopian_Dramaqueen and Dcgal814 for being my sounding board for this and all of your helpful feedback!

 

_Gendry Baratheon, Lord of Storm’s End..._

 

No matter how many times Gendry heard his name and title or thought it to himself, it never became any less surreal. Storm’s End, mercifully, had run fine without him for years. Truthfully, there wasn’t much that needed his attention outside of a decision floated his way every once in a while. And there was the business of finding a suitable lady for Storm’s End.

 

Ser Davos had come to help Gendry find his way a bit. He taught him what he could about being the lord of a castle, tending to business regarding the people of the Stormlands, and of course, he worked tirelessly to find Gendry a wife.

 

The last task proved to be the biggest challenge. It wasn’t difficult finding interested ladies. Countless ladies of Westeros were eagerly vying for the chance to turn the head of the handsome new Lord of Storm’s End. Ser Davos would invite them to the castle for introductions. Sometimes dinner as well as walks around the castle grounds. The majority of the ladies were quite lovely, some of them even educated and witty. But even the most beautiful of them all would receive the same report from Gendry to Ser Davos after she had gone, “that’s not her.”

 

Ser Davos was patient with Gendry at first, wanting the new lord to find a proper match. But after months of the same response, not a single lady apparently up to Gendry’s standards, Davos became increasingly irritated.

 

When not being forced to court beautiful ladies, Gendry took solace in the only place he truly felt at home. His forge. Gendry had insisted that a fully stocked and functional forge be built in the castle courtyard. Smithing was the only thing in his life he knew he was really good at. The only thing that completely made sense to him. He no longer smithed for work or to serve anyone but himself. When he needed to be alone, to think, or to put the life of a lord aside for a while, he would steal away to his forge and just work for hours.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

“What’s the name of this one?” Gendry asked, bored and already irritated by the idea of suffering through another awkward evening with the next potential bride Ser Davos had found for him.

 

“Lady Gwenyth. She is lovely and waiting for you in the solar. Do me a favor and try to have an open mind with this one, hm?”

 

Gendry scowled at Ser Davos but turned to head to the solar. As he approached the entrance, he stopped and briefly watched the lady waiting for him. She had long, wavy brown hair to her waist and she was standing, her back to the door, looking at the array of ornaments hanging on the wall. One item in particular caught her eye and Gendry’s breath caught in his throat. She walked toward a long, spear-like weapon mounted to the wall. A sharp and extremely carefully crafted piece of dragon glass on either end. Her hand slowly lifted towards the weapon.

 

“Don’t touch that!” Gendry entered abruptly, forgetting himself completely.

 

Lady Gwenyth, startled, turned around towards him, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t going to…”

 

Gendry immediately moved to apologize. He had completely overreacted, “No, I know, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped…” he walked further into the room, towards her. He attempted a smile and offered his hand, when she took it he gracefully bowed and raised her fingers to his lips, just as he had been taught as the proper way to greet a lady. “Lady Gwenyth, welcome to Storm’s End.”

 

She smiled and curtsied as was the custom, “My lord, thank you for having me. I do apologize for…”

 

“No apologies necessary.” He paused and looked up at the weapon, his face instantly softened, “Anyway, if I made it well enough, you couldn’t break it anyway.”

 

“You made this?”

 

“I did.”

 

Her hand lifted once more, not to touch the weapon but to hover just over the sharp object on one end, “I don’t think I recognize this… is it some kind of stone?”

 

“Dragon glass. It’s one of the only ways to kill the dead.”

 

“The dead?”

 

“The Army of the Dead, White Walker Army. They came down south of the Wall and attacked Winterfell.”

 

“And you were there? You fought them?”

 

“Killed a lot of them, yeah.”

 

“With this?”

 

He paused, his gaze softened looking at the spear as did his voice, “No… I made this for someone…”

 

~

 

His tone, the look of affection on his face as he looked at the weapon, she could tell this had been made for someone very important to him. She ventured to say as much gauging his reaction as she did so, “Someone special to you… someone you cared for… someone you loved.” His face remained soft but unchanged until she finally guessed correctly, “Someone you _love_.” She saw his eyes flick down and blink a few times. That was it, he was still in love with the person he made this for. She realized she was being bold but she ventured further, “I didn’t realize women fought in that battle.”

 

“Many women did. Brave, strong women. The woman who used this is the one who saved us all.”

 

“The Night King Slayer? Arya Stark?” Arya Stark had become a legend throughout Westeros as the woman who single-handedly slayed the Night King, bringing peace to the Realm.

 

Gendry just nodded, still looking fondly at the weapon.

 

She was being bold and intrusive but her curiosity couldn’t be stopped. If he had loved Arya Stark, he must have asked her to marry him and yet he was still looking for a bride, she ventured once more, “And the Savior of the Seven Kingdoms didn’t want to be the Lady of Storm’s End, I suppose…” She saw Gendry’s face darken from his profile and she realized she had gone too far. These wounds were still quite fresh for him, clearly. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said…”

 

“No, it’s alright. It feels good to talk about her, actually. I spend most of my time trying to forget.” He turned away from the weapon and walked over to the seating area, gesturing that she should take the seat opposite him.

 

“Where is she now?” She asked as she sat down.

 

“Took a ship and sailed West. She wanted to find out what was West of Westeros.”

 

“Why didn’t you just go with her?”

 

Again, Gendry looked down, but his look was bittersweet, “She didn’t ask.”

 

“Would you have gone if she had?”

 

He considered this question for a moment, looking far away in front of him, “Sometimes I think… ‘yes, in a heartbeat’ but…”

 

“You couldn’t leave Storm’s End?”

 

Gendry chuckled, “I hadn’t been a lord for even two months when she left. Storm’s End had done just fine without me for years, I’m sure it would’ve still been standing when I returned.”

 

“Then why not?”

 

He looked down at his hands, seemingly reflecting on something, “ _‘Where Arya goes, I follow…’_ when we were young I used to think that a lot. But now… I think that was her path to take, not mine. I would only be following her. Probably even getting in her way. I think we were just heading in two different directions. She didn’t want to settle here with me, and I couldn’t follow her out there.”

 

“And yet, forgive me, but, you don’t sound like you’ve moved on. There’s still so much love in your voice. So much longing. You didn’t follow her but, you are waiting for her… to return to you someday.”

 

~

 

Gendry wanted to protest but her words rang true. He was. He didn’t want to admit it but there it was. The truth in his heart. Tears stung his eyes and he lowered his head, trying to blink them away.

 

“I’m sorry about this… You came here and I’m supposed to be courting you and I’m sure the last thing you want is to hear about my former lover…”

 

“I’m the one asking the questions, remember? Oddly, I’ve enjoyed this... I like knowing what’s truly in your heart.” She paused, looking at him, a bit defeated, “But… there doesn’t seem to be room for anyone new. At least, not yet… And I must admit, Arya Stark sounds like a tough act to follow…”

 

He was silent. He couldn’t deny she had spoken the truth. He thought to protest but it wouldn’t be fair. She deserved better.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Lady Gwyneth politely took her leave, thanking Ser Davos for the gracious invitation. _Oh no, of course not, everything was lovely…_

 

Ser Davos fumed as he watched her carriage leave and turned back inside to find the impertinent boy.

 

Gendry walked into the Round Hall and Davos fell in line, after him, visibly angry.

 

"Well that's another one you've scared off. What was wrong with this one? Too pretty? Too poised? Too perfect?"

 

"There was nothing wrong with her. She was lovely."

 

"You are the Lord of Storm's End. It is your duty to marry and father an heir."

 

Gendry stopped and turned to face him, "And that has to happen today, does it?"

 

"How many available ladies do you think there are in Westeros, hm? You are already almost out of options."

 

"I will marry when I find someone I want to marry. And if I end up the last of the Baratheon line, so be it." Gendry turned and began to leave.

 

"You realize you're not going to find what you're looking for, don't you?” Davos’ tone made Gendry freeze in his tracks. “You think any of these ladies have been schooled in archery and sword fighting?"

 

Gendry turned back and just stared at him, coldly. “Tell the staff I’ll take my supper in my bed chamber.”

  



	2. Dreams of Arya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gendry is haunted day and night by thoughts and dreams of Arya.

Gendry often dreamed about Arya. Sometimes it was flashes of memories from when they traveled together when they were young. Sometimes he dreamed of their future. He dreamed of her coming back, sailing into Shipbreaker Bay. He would see her from his tower, standing on the Port Bow as the ship docked, a few years older but stunning with longer hair blowing in the stormy wind.

 

But more than anything he dreamed of that night before the Battle of Winterfell. How it felt to kiss her, to want her, knowing she wanted him. The way her soft, warm skin felt as he ran his hands up her back. The way it felt to be sheathed inside her as she moved on top of him.

 

One moment, in particular, he replayed in his head over and over. His mind would wander off when he would be smithing or often when Davos would be rattling off lord and lady business to him. In his dreams it was even more vivid...

 

_Sufficiently wet and open for him, Gendry had guided himself to her opening and Arya had slowly sunk down onto him. They moved slowly, kissing softly, she felt amazing around him. His eyes were lidded as his pleasure instantly began to build. He looked closely at Arya’s face, though, and she looked...confused. Her eyes seemed to be focused on a spot just beyond his head, she was concentrating in a way she shouldn’t be. He didn’t detect any pain, it was definitely confusion, possibly even disappointment._

 

_“You alright, love?” He asked softly, touching the side of her face._

 

_Arya nodded, eyes still focused just passed him. “Is this right?” She asked._

 

 _He smiled, encouraging, “You’re perfect…_ I _can do better…”_

 

_Gendry gently placed his hands on her hips and shifted their position slightly to move them both to a better angle for Arya, and gently guided her with his hand on her lower back, closer to him. Then he moved his hands to her hips again and guided her again to move against him. He watched her face as her eyelids slipped closed, her lips parted, and a delicious moan escaped her mouth._

 

_He smiled, “Better?”_

 

_Arya’s pleasure was clear on her face as she nodded and looked down at him, beginning to increase her pace slightly, bending down to kiss him. They continued at a steady, aching rhythm, alternating kisses and moans and caresses as they slowly enjoyed each other…_

 

He would always wake somewhere in the middle, as is the cruelty of vivid dreams. He would wake still feeling her around him and her warm breath against his neck, her soft sighs and moans like a haunting echo in his suddenly dark, lonely, quiet bedroom. And suddenly, she’s gone, evaporating away like fine mist and a more familiar ache would spread through his chest.

 

This never got any easier. She never faded. He couldn’t stop his mind from wandering to her and he couldn’t stop his dreams from haunting him. Truthfully, though, if he could stop it, would he?

  



	3. Arya's Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After three years Arya has finally returned. Gendry is ecstatic, Davos is concerned.

  
Three years had passed since Arya's departure and life at Storm's End had continued mostly unchanged. Ser Davos eventually stopped trying to find a match for the young lord. Every attempt had been a battle and only seemed to result in disappointment and frustration to the poor young ladies.

 

Until one day, a young member of the castle staff found Ser Davos in the Round Hall and hurried to him with news,"Ser Davos! A ship has arrived, it dropped anchor in Shipbreaker Bay."

 

Ser Davos scoffed at this, "Dropped anchor? There is no safe anchorage in Shipbreaker Bay…"

 

"Well, they've tried to, anyway. House Stark markings on the flags and bow. Should I tell m'lord?"

 

Davos considered this information carefully. He nodded and said, "I'll tell him."

 

As Davos made his way to the courtyard where he suspected Gendry to be, he considered the effect Arya's return would have on the boy. Davos knew it was exactly what Gendry had been waiting and hoping for, but if she leaves him broken hearted again, Davos worried he may never recover this time.

 

Davos walked into the courtyard and saw Gendry talking to one of the groundskeepers. Bless him, it looked like they were laughing and sharing stories over ale, not at all like the appropriate discord between lord and staff.

 

Gendry saw Davos approach and took his leave of the groundskeeper to greet his mentor Knight.

 

"My lord…" Ser Davos bowed.

 

"Don't do that…" Gendry insisted.

 

Ser Davos ignored him, "my lord, a ship has dropped anchor in Shipbreaker Bay…" he paused and saw the hope spread across the boy's face. Davos nodded, "House Stark markings on flags and bow. I think it's her…"

 

A huge smile broke across Gendry's face and he took off running in the direction of the Bay.

 

"Gendry!" Ser Davos using Gendry's first name made him stop and turn back to face him, surprised. Ser Davos cautioned, "She has returned but she still may not stay…"

 

Gendry nodded, warning noted, and turned again to run towards his lady.

 

~

 

Gendry saw her before he reached the Bay. Arya had appeared at the far end of the courtyard. She looked just as he'd dreamed… her clothes were similar as before but her hair was, indeed, much longer, still pulled back from her face at the top but otherwise flowing in the wind around her shoulders. The sight of her made his soul ache. She looked even more beautiful than she had the last time he saw her.

 

They had both stopped at the sight of each other. Frozen in place. Arya was the first to move toward him, closing the distance between them with a brisk walk. As she got close Gendry began to speak, "Arya, I…" and just as she'd done that night before the Battle of Winterfell, Arya silenced him with a kiss. She tasted like the sea. Gendry hesitated for only a second before pulling her into his arms and kissing her back, completely helpless to resist his overwhelming need for her.

 

Gendry picked her up swiftly and did not stop kissing her all the way to his bed chambers.

 

~

 

Davos watched the young couple retreat into the castle, mildly concerned. He knew this had been what the boy had wanted more than anything. He feared his happiness would be brief, once again. And yet he admired the depth of devotion the boy had for Arya. Unable to even think of any other woman during her absence. _So like Robert…_ he thought, _and yet, so different..._

  



	4. Pillow Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya and Gendry do not waste any time getting down to business in Gendry's bed chamber. Serious talk follows...

  
Door closed behind them, they kissed feverishly and fumbled with the buckles on their outer clothes. Too many obstacles to ecstasy between them, Gendry would stop periodically to just hold her face and kiss and kiss and kiss her. Not quite able to fully believe she was really here, with him, wanting him again. "Arya…. I've missed you so much…" he panted between kisses.

 

"I missed you too…" she breathed back.

 

Gendry's distracted kisses meant that Arya was able to undress Gendry first, all of his clothes tossed aside, he lifted and carried her, still kissing, over to his bed, gently laying her down and trailing kisses down her neck as he finished unbuckling her outer clothes, finally sliding them off and tossing them aside, then easily lifting her under shirt over her head, discarding that as well. He made quicker work of her pants and soon there was nothing left between them.

 

Gendry's lips buried in her neck, he slipped a hand between her legs. As he suspected, she was ready... _very_ ready for him...thank the gods… He kissed every inch of skin he could as he positioned himself on top of her and easily pushed himself inside her, they both moaned loudly as he did.

 

Gendry wanted to take this slow and began a steady rhythmic movement. He buried his face in her neck and cupped her breast with his left hand, running his thumb over her hardened nipple.

 

They continued like this, kissing, moving, moaning, and touching for a few minutes when suddenly, to Gendry's surprise, Arya suddenly gripped him at his hips with her knees and swiftly flipped them both over, topping him.

 

Now Arya was riding him hard and he couldn't help but notice...skillfully. Sitting on top of him, she reached behind her with one hand to grip his leg for support as she shifted her angle back slightly, fucking him with fervor, eyes closed, a look of ecstasy on her face. His mind raced but what she was doing to him quickly took over as he moaned loudly and cried out, " _Fuuuck_ _me_ ….!" He sat up to meet her, hooking his arms under hers and pulling her close, his mouth on her clavicle then moving up to her throat. Arya rolled her pelvis against him and they fell into a steady, agonizing rhythm grinding against each other. Loud moans and more obscenities exchanged between them until they both came hard together, clinging to each other as multiple waves of pleasure spasmed through both of their bodies. Then they collapsed in a tangled, exhausted, sweaty heap. Arya was giggling as she continued to kiss him, grinding against him a bit more until her orgasm finally sated.

 

Both spent and out of breath, Gendry pulled her in close to him, loving how perfectly her small frame tucked in against him. He kissed the top of her head and they lay like that quietly for a while, recovering.

 

As Gendry's afterglow began to fade and his mind began to function again, a hard, unpleasant pit began to form in his stomach. He suddenly realized what was upsetting him and he instantly hated himself for it, but there it was. He was pissed. And jealous as fuck.

 

Gendry pulled away and sat on the edge of the bed, pulling his dressing gown around him. Clearly upset.

 

“What’s wrong?” Arya asked, confused by his sudden mood change.

 

Gendry looked at her, part of his fur bed covering was draped over her naked body, her right leg exposed up to her hip, the top of her left breast poking above the cover on the other side. She was so lovely. His she-wolf, the love of his life, the reason he drew breath and why he hasn’t been able to even think about touching another woman over the last three years. And yet, clearly… "How many lovers have you had since you saw me last?" He spat the question out, unable to hide the bitterness in his voice.

 

"What?"

 

He looked at her, his tone was accusatory, "I was your first, right? I was _definitely not_ your second." He had no right and he knew it. She had turned down his proposal, she had made him no promises of fidelity, he had no claim to her. He was being an arse. And yet he couldn’t stop himself.

 

"Are you angry? You didn't seem to mind so much a moment ago..." Arya looked confused at his sudden sharp tone and then a coy grin broke across her face, "You're jealous…" she teased.

 

Gendry wasn’t in the mood for games, "How many?" his tone was sharp as he stood, walking around the end of the bed as the mocking began, "What _, you don't remember_? One…? Two...? Twenty…?" He was being a brazen arsehole and he’d never hated himself more than in this very moment and yet he couldn’t stop from hurtling his completely irrational anger at her.

 

~

 

Arya didn’t owe him an explanation and she knew it. But she also felt like she understood where this was coming from...he was hurt and underneath that, he still loved her. "Two" she finally said. "Jasper and Lucas. They were on the ship, part of the crew. They were nice, but it wasn't love or anything like that. You can't imagine how boring it gets out there… nothing but water as far as the eye can see. There's only so much you can do on a boat. After a while, everybody was fucking just to pass the time."

 

Gendry had sat down on the other side of the bed, looking back at her, "You weren't worried about getting pregnant out there?" His tone had softened a little.

 

"There was a Maester on board. He had plenty of Moon Tea for the women. To be completely honest I only actually used it a few times, just as a precaution." Tired of discussing her nautical trysts she turned the questioning on him, "What about you? I'm sure the lovely ladies of Westeros have been lining up for a chance with you."

 

Gendry scoffed, "Plenty. It's all Ser Davos ever talks about. I've lost count of the number of beautiful ladies he's introduced me to. But I… I haven't been able to…"

 

All at once realization hit Arya and she sat up, leaning towards him, "That's why you're upset… you were waiting for me. And I didn't wait for you. I'm sorry. Truthfully, I wanted it to be you, every time."

 

"I didn't want to wait for you. I wanted to move on with my life and fall in love with one of the beautiful ladies Davos paraded in front of me."

 

"Being a lord or lady… marriage isn't usually about falling in love."

 

"Well I wanted it to be. I didn't want to end up like my father, pining the rest of his life for his one true love who he lost, starting wars to try to mend his broken heart."

 

Arya’s heart broke, the meaning behind his words both touched and pained her, "Gendry…"

 

"Anyway, I tried. I just couldn't. It's like you've been haunting me. You crept into my thoughts every day. You were in my dreams at night. I couldn't shake you.” Bitterness crept back into his voice, “Clearly you didn't have this problem."

 

"It was _boredom_ Gendry, that's all. I promise. I thought about you all the time. So many times I stood at the bow of the ship and wished you would magically appear behind me and put your arms around me."

 

~

 

Gendry’s bitterness turned to self-pity, the floodgates had been opened, why stop now? "Why didn't you ask me?" He looked up to meet her eyes, "to go with you?"

 

Arya’s eyes looked sad, "I thought… I thought it was something I needed to do alone. For what it's worth, I was wrong. Every day I wished you were out there with me."

 

Gendry felt every tense muscle in his body relax, exhausted by his own irrational impertinence, he ran both hands over his face and looked back at her, his bitterness and self-pity gone and replaced with apologetic calmness, "I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm so upset. I asked you to marry me and you said no. I accepted your answer back then. I had no claim to you."

 

Arya closed the distance between them, crawling across the bed, letting the fur cover drop as she took his face in her hands, "They were only in my bed, you're the only one in my heart." She kissed him softly. He kissed back, his hands slipping up to caress her bare back, one hand sliding to the nape of her neck. They broke apart and stayed close, foreheads touching. Arya bit her lip, nervous, “Gendry…?”

 

“Hm…?” Gendry just mumbled, loving the feel of her warm body so close to him, not wanting to break the spell they’d fallen into.

 

“Is it too late to say ‘yes’?”

 

Gendry blinked, stunned. Pulling away only far enough to see her face. “Say ‘yes’ to what?” he asked, heart racing, not daring to believe she meant what he thought she meant.

 

“‘Yes’ to be your lady…?”

 

She barely got the last word out before Gendry kissed her so hard they both fell back onto the bed. “Do you really mean it?” He asked, his emotions all over the place, “please don’t be joking…”

 

Arya laughed, “I would never joke about that. Yes I mean it!”

 

Arya giggled as Gendry smothered her with kisses, all over her face, down her neck, onto her chest and then back up to her mouth, kissing her long and deep. After several sweet moments he gently pulled back, “I love you so much…”

 

“I love you too…”

 

“Are you _sure_?”

 

“I’m sure.”  


“What changed your mind?”

 

Arya gently pulled him up next to her on the bed so they were lying side by side, facing each other. She touched his face softly, lovingly, “when you asked me to marry you before, I panicked, because I saw my entire life flash before my eyes, everything decided for me. There was so much I still wanted to do and I feared I would never do any of them if we got married.” She kissed him softly again and ran a finger gently along his cheek, following the adorable groove of his dimple, “I had a lot of time to think while I was away. I’ve already done so much, even things you still don’t know about. I’ve had so many adventures and I’ve satisfied my curiosity to explore the unknown world. There’s just one more adventure I still need to have and I think I’m finally ready for it…”

 

Gendry actually got nervous, was she going to leave him again? “What adventure is that?”

 

“Family… our own family…” Gendry beamed. Arya continued, “on one condition…”

 

“Anything!” Gendry laughed.

 

“Our life will be whatever we want it to be… fuck traditions, fuck titles… our sons and daughters will grow up to be whatever they want. They’ll only be lords and ladies if that’s what they want but they can also be fighters and explorers and scholars and artists and blacksmiths if they want that too. We build our own family, our own life, and we make our own rules. What do you say?”

 

Gendry laughed and began to smother her with kisses again, rolling her onto her back, he caressed her face and gazed into her eyes, “I say that I wish I hadn’t fucked up my marriage proposal to you back at Winterfell, because this was exactly the life I always wanted to give you…” they both laughed and suddenly Gendry sat up, pulling her up with him. Arya looked confused until he took her hands in his and gazed at her steadily, “Let me say now what I should’ve said then… I love you, Arya Stark, exactly as you are and I never want you to be anything else. Our life will be whatever you want it to be. We can travel, you can teach me how to use a sword properly, and I will make you as many weapons as you want for the rest of your life… All I want is for you to be my family…”

 

A single, happy tear slid down Arya’s cheek as she leaned in to kiss him again holding his face in her hands, “I can be that...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this for them was cathartic for me. I hope it may help others as well. I do honestly believe these characters will always find their way back to each other. 
> 
> My first multi-chap and my first attempt at smut... yay! 
> 
> Huge thanks to Dystopian_Dramaqueen and Dcgal814 for being my sounding board for this and all of your helpful feedback!


End file.
